Silent Understanding
by Infinite Snow
Summary: He didn't have to tell her he loved her. She silently understood. [Zutara]


A/N: A lot of stream of consciousness's, lots of rambling, elaborating on the known past and inserting bits and pieces of tweaked parts of the past.

Dialogue is bare minimum to moderate. This is not overly romantic, this is just a deep love with a lot of thought to it. If you want passionate romance, then you chose the wrong fic.

-x-

Zuko.

He had once been a prince, next-in-line for the throne after his father, with luxuries. Yet his life has been anything but joyous.

With a father whose heart desires and thirsts for money, fame, and power and a psychotic, delirious, powerful sister who is favored by his father, life was anything but smooth.

Zuko had some people who understood him. His uncle mutually agreed that world conquer is not the best idea. They would both wonder together, how nicer and better the world would be, when the four nations of four different elements could coexist peacefully.

He had a kindhearted mother as well. To others, he was naturally classified as "mommy's boy" as Azula was classified as "daddy's girl".

But besides that, no one knew how special his mother was to him, how much she meant to him than just bringing him into the world. His mother supported his kind and caring nature, always encouraging him that when he will be king he can amend with other nations. She would always say that she knew her son would make a noble fire lord, much better than the monstrous Ozai.

But all good things came to an end. His mother was gone, and he was banished along with his uncle for speaking out against attacking water tribes.

As he had gone to the railings of the ship, watching frigid ice water clash furiously against icebergs and a bandage over his burnt eye, he wondered, if bringing the Avatar would have truly earned his honor back. Would his father truly love him if he redeems himself?

Katara.

Small water tribe peasant, in the eyes of Zuko. Not many people paid attention, but she was actually a princess of the Water Tribe (Let's forget the fact that the princess was Yue, k?).

Her lineage which had traced back to the ancient royal family of the Water nation, which had been all but destroyed by Ozai in his attempts to weaken the Water Nation before destroying them completely. Her identity had changed long before she was born and now she lived the life of the common folk.

Her mother had sacrificed herself in order for Katara to live, and Kya's death served as a sole reminder to Fire Nation's cruelty. Fire benders were heartless monsters. They are the bringers of death, and nothing may stand in their way.

Somehow Katara pondered over the fact that fire was in fact a necessary part of her life. Fire keeps her family warm and from freezing to death from the cold weather.

Even though her father, who had developed intense hatred for the fire nation, told her the evils of the fire benders, she couldn't help but to wonder.

How lovely it must be to be able to bring warmth into the world.

They meet.

They had met several times. He would try to snatch the Avatar, and when that wouldn't work, he would go for Katara. He even kidnapped her, and brought her to his ship.

But the master waterbender found loopholes under his nose and somehow was able to either break her way out, or with a little help from Aang and Sokka (who did nothing but yell colorful threats to Zuko and wave his boomerang around).

He suddenly didn't want to catch a prize anymore in hopes of being loved. It didn't feel different from hunting an animal down.

Somehow, he felt like a child again, watching Azula in horror as her face twisted into a sick grin as she killed small innocent animals just because she was forced by their mother to have some bonding time.

He had changed his mind. Confronted his father, and redirected the lightning shot at him.

He wanted to change. But she wouldn't accept him back. Even when all the others would hug him back eventually with open arms, she stayed clear of him, crossing her arms and looking at him as if he were a huge bug.

"Why won't you trust me?" Zuko asked, exasperated.

"Oh I did trust you," Katara sneered, her eyes dangerously slitting, "I was one of the first ones to trust you! And what did you do? You broke it!"

And with an angry swipe of her hand, letting water follow its master, Katara stormed away.

But something in Zuko didn't want to just become her friend. He wanted it to be something way more than that.

At night, he would dream of happy times he had with his sister, when she wasn't all psychotic, when her pranks were simple. Setting Mai's hair on fire, and making them both kiss by being shoved in a pond.

He would remember feeding turtle ducks with his mother. He would remember watching fireflies with his sister, and Azula would angrily bat at the glowing bugs because their mother strictly forbade squashing the bugs between the fingers – before they had firebending.

He would remember pondering how he would want his fire lady to be as graceful, beautiful, kind, compassionate, and selfless as his mother.

He would remember taking walks with Mai, a shy girl who would hide behind her weapons. Mai obviously liked him, but she liked him before he got the scar. She liked him because he was handsome, rich, of royalty, in line for throne.

He would remember Mai trying to get on his good side by hinting at a possible relationship perhaps making his attention only focused on her so she could be guaranteed a spot as his fire lady.

But, he remembered, looking at her, touching her face ever so softly, that for a moment, Mai thought she had him wrapped around her little pinky.

"_You are beautiful, Mai, no doubt. But within that pretty face is a heart consumed by greed, jealousy and anger. I could never love such an ugly girl like you."_

Mai's pretty face had fallen apart, and she ran away, sobbing.

He had met her a few times after that. He had caught up with Azula after he had momentarily redeemed his honor, and she had tried to force herself on him, her childish desire never melted away. But for the last time, he pushed her away. And for a real reason.

Katara, the waterbender. She was immensely beautiful but she cared so much about others than himself, that he saw his mother in the form of a teenage girl a few years younger than him.

Every time she was confronted by him, she fiercely stuck to the principles she knew were right. Such ferocity burning in those royal blue eyes of them had taken Zuko aback. Sure, her element was the water. But her attitude put the ferocity of fire to shame.

It was then, he remembered he loved her.

"Why can't you understand I have changed?" Zuko cried as Katara had stomped off to a nearby lake to cool off her steam. No matter how beautiful and fierce she was, she was irritating, for Agni's sake!

"I have trusted you so many times! And every time-"

"I went and broke it!" Zuko yelled, "But back in Ba Sing Se, I pretended to join my sister! I wasn't really on her side!"

"Well whether your mind planned it that way or not, it was till betrayal!" Katara yelled, "And you can't just expect me when they kick you out for me to forgive you and go all tender hearted again!"

"Please, Katara, what can I do to make this better?" Zuko exasperatedly sighed.

"Oh that ship has sailed! Your chance is gone!" Katara roared, and ran even faster, disappearing into the woods.

It somehow infuriated her how unpredictable he could be! Katara could understand his need to capture Aang in order for him to try to be loved by his father, though he had doubted capturing the Avatar would do any good (not that she would willingly hand Aang over to him).

She understood his pain from his separation from his mother. She could relate to that because she lost her own to the fire nation.

Clenching her fists and making a huge wave due to a fit of tantrum, Katara swallowed her pride as the wave crashed on her back.

She understood so many times that he was suffering, banished from his safe bubble, but so was she! He isn't the only one suffering! Now that she is helping the Avatar, she is on the run and her safety is on the line!

And just because he is trying to 'restore honor' or whatever that nonsense was, she can't understand why he had to become some kind of heartless jerk and stomp on her heart when she forgave him.

And she didn't just forgive him _once. _She forgave him multiple times! And every time he stomped on it, as if he were extinguishing a fire that once burned in her heart.

Sometimes, after enough tries, a person realizes that the other person will not change, that he or she will remain foolish and wavering and a backstabber.

So her heart had closed up and hard and heavy and burdening. All was well, she had finally accepted Zuko would and would always be for all eternity be a spoiled brat until she saw him stumble across their camp and wave shyly.

Seeing his face contorted with a shy grin… had made her livid. She didn't want him to act all 'innocent' thinking she would just melt, and accept him back!

Oh she was fine! She didn't need him! Katara growled and started making huge waves before freezing them.

She didn't want fake promises. She didn't want a statement of a changed heart. She didn't want declarations of loyalty. They were all useless. She wanted actions.

Zuko had started to redeem himself when he began teaching Aang firbending. Going through all that trouble to renew his own outlook as well as grant a the bending of life for Aang had somehow warmed Katara's heart.

However when they had come back and showed some weird dance moves they had learned over there, some firebending technique they had learned.

"It is an ancient technique thousands and thousands of years old!" Zuko exclaimed.

Katara set her cup down, unimpressed.

"Oh yeah? What is this ancient technique called?" Katara's lips twisted into a small smirk. A silly technique had a silly name.

Zuko's face had morphed into temporary agony as he had muttered, "Dancing… dragon."

Everyone had laughed and Katara had thought, while her giggles of mirth, she thought, his face was cute, twisted into a silly baby pout as the gang had laughed at his momentary pain.

He had proved himself to be a good person when he helped her avenge her mother's death, confronting the monster who had taken her mother away from her. Zuko had never questioned her, he never asked her how she learned the dreadful bloodbending and he stood quietly to the side when she yelled at the man who had taken a piece of her life away from her.

He understood the pain, much better than an average person has.

When the time of the Sozin's comet came, while most of the gang would chase after stopping the comet and confronting Ozai, Zuko had to fight for the throne.

He didn't want to fight alone. He didn't want to face his past alone. When he looked at Katara, her eyes brightened as she smiled and nodded.

"It would be my honor."

Even after the war was over, and Zuko had been crowned the Fire Lord, the world had depended on him too much. He couldn't take a rest from the needs of the people. Mai had come back, clingy as ever. Just when he thought he had pushed some sense into her, she came bounding back.

"Why won't you ever look at me?" Mai demanded, childishly, "What does that waterbending peasant have that I don't?"

Zuko had never considered himself a violet person. He had never even dared to raise a hand on anybody, ever, even his most annoying enemies. But when anyone insulted Katara, hell could break loose.

Mai's face had been jerked to one side, after a resounding 'slap' had filled the grand hallway. Her cheek was stinging and little teardrops pricked out of her eyes. Zuko had unleashed how much power he has, and how bad it could be if anyone insulted Katara.

"I think you know where the exit door is, hmm?" Zuko raised an eyebrow as Mai stood in shock at his cold indifference.

His warm child hood face had merged into that of an adult's – matured, calm and perceptive. Like any other adult, he had fallen in love with a woman so much that he wouldn't bare to hear anyone to talk trash about her.

But Mai's heart broke the final time. That woman was not her.

As she screamed an I-Hate-You with all of her strength in Zuko's face and ran out of the palace, out of one of the many exits, Zuko felt his heart break a little bit.

Though Mai was never his love interest, or even a friend (because Azula forced them both together), he felt hurt when people said that one line to him. Those three words, three syllables, eight letters, one sentence.

"You look like you saw your future," Katara mused, one day when they were alone in a room of one of the meeting rooms of the palace.

"I had a confrontation with Mai," Zuko sighed, shuffling finished paperwork together.

"Ah, I see. Isn't she that annoying girl you told me about, that just wouldn't give up on you?" Katara recounted what Zuko told her.

"Yes."

"What happened?"

"I had slapped her."

Katara's face morphed into horror as she had dramatically scooted her chair in shock. Her mouth agape with awe and appalled.

"Zuko, how could you? Sure the girl was a wee bit annoying and never fully appreciated you but you can't trample on her feelings like that!" Katara scolded Zuko.

"What feelings, Katara? What feelings? She only wanted me because back then I had no ugly scar on my face-"

"I _offered _to heal it for you should you want it gone, not that I want it gone-"

"I don't want it gone! She was like all the other girls that wanted a trophy guy: all handsome, rich, and strong. She didn't even care that I hated that, and she certainly didn't want to know me what I am on the inside," Zuko yelled.

"But that still wasn't a reason to-"

"She called you a waterbending peasant," Zuko grimaced on the one word, "And no one gets to call you and diminish you like that. You are in no means a mere peasant."

With that, the Fire Lord stormed out of the meeting room, leaving the young waterbender to acknowledge his words.

Katara put a hand to her heart. His possessive words somehow made her feel… warm?

She had thought that Aang was the one for her, but she and he both could agree one the idea that they were as close as brothers and sisters could get.

Aang had loved Toph for a long time and it made Katara the happiest person on Earth to watch them, whom she considered her brother and sister, nurture a blooming relationship.

Though as she watched Sokka and Suki get married and Toph and Aang get engaged and Zuko get constantly annoyed by Mai, it seemed that everyone had someone special with them, all except her.

While she was happy for everybody else, she felt… lonely. She wanted to be hugged and kissed and held the same way all the other girls were held by their special guys.

One day, as she had sat down near the pond in the courtyard, Katara fed the turtle ducks bits and pieces of bread.

She knew turtle ducks were a big part of Zuko's bonding with his mother. A small smile graced to her lips. Maybe if she had disappeared, she might be alive? It is all worth a shot, and she might as well drag Zuko into plans on finding his mother. He better not let his mother go, if she is somewhere in the world.

"I see you like the turtle ducks."

Katara turned around to see Zuko softly smiling at her.

"Yeah, I do. They are adorable."

Zuko softly laughed, and nodded, "They were a big part of my childhood."

"She may be out there, Zuko, you have to try."

Zuko looked at Katara, who had her fierce determination mirrored in his gold eyes. Reaching his hand out, he shook it gently with the waterbender's.

They had spent so much time with each other, that he felt like he could unwind and be himself, a person who would be considered alien-like to the Fire Nation.

Katara had learned to let everything out when she was with him. He was a good and close person who she could spill private matters to without harboring the fear of it being exposed.

When one cold and muggy day, when Zuko had the strangest urge to walk in the rain, he decided, he loved her so damn much that he couldn't be able to survive if she rejected him.

Coming to a stop, Katara pummeled into his back, blushing slightly. Zuko slightly smiled, twirling around and taking her hands in his. Looking intently in her eyes, he knew the moment was right.

"Katara for the longest time I have-"

Katara placed a finger to his lips and yanked on his hands, making him lean forward until their lips met and melted the moment into a small sweet moment, nothing too passionate or overdone.

Breaking the sweet kiss, she looked up into his eyes, her oceanic eyes boring into his ember ones.

"I knew."

_-fin-_


End file.
